Understanding the lymphatic system can help us teach with more clarity, especially when students are dealing with swelling, lymphedema, recovery after cancer treatment, or simply a body that tends to feel puffy, heavy, or sluggish. It also offers useful insight into how breath and movement support health for all students, not just those with a medical condition.
In this workshop with guest expert Sinead Cobbe, we explore this topic in more depth.
What is the lymphatic system?
The lymphatic system is a fluid system in the body that sits alongside the bloodstream. It is separate from the circulatory system, but works closely with it.
Its job is to collect excess fluid from around the cells, transport cellular waste, help move fats from the gut, and support immunity. That fluid, once collected, is called lymph. The system then moves it back towards the neck, where it returns to the bloodstream and can be processed by the body.
The lymphatic system also includes lymph nodes, which act as small processing points along the way. There are hundreds of these throughout the body, with many around the neck, armpits, groins, behind the knees, and around the organs.
Why the lymphatic system matters
We often only notice the lymphatic system when something feels off. Puffy ankles after a flight. Hands swelling in heat. Shoes feeling tighter by evening. Glands coming up during illness.
Yet this system is working all the time. It helps keep fluid moving, waste clearing, and immune responses functioning. When it is under strain, sluggish, or damaged, that can affect how the body feels and functions.
The lymphatic system does not have a pump like the heart. It relies heavily on movement, muscular activity, and breathing to keep fluid moving.
That is where yoga becomes especially relevant.
Yoga, movement, and lymphatic flow
Because the lymphatic system depends on movement, yoga can support it well.
Muscle activity helps move lymph, especially from the limbs back towards the centre of the body. This means movement itself matters. Not just stretching, but activation. Gentle pulsing, pressing into the floor, subtle repetitions, and muscular engagement can all help encourage flow.
This is also why long periods of stillness, sitting, or inactivity can leave some people feeling more swollen or heavy.
Inversions may also help, especially for the legs, because they assist fluid back down with gravity. This can include very simple variations such as legs up the wall, not just advanced inversions.
Why the diaphragm matters so much
The diaphragm is considered a major driver of lymphatic flow. Deep, low breathing helps create movement through the torso and supports lymphatic drainage. Stronger diaphragmatic actions, such as more forceful breath techniques, may also stimulate the system.
For yoga teachers, this reinforces something already important: belly breathing and diaphragmatic breath are not just calming for the nervous system. They may also support the healthy movement of lymph.
Even simple low breathing into the base of the lungs can be valuable, especially for students who tend to breathe shallowly into the upper chest.
Can yoga help students with lymphedema?
Yes, but with care and clarity.
Lymphedema is a specific type of swelling caused by damage to or blockage within the lymphatic system. A common example is arm lymphedema after breast cancer treatment, though it can happen elsewhere in the body too.
Current understanding is that movement and exercise are helpful, not harmful. Strengthening, activity, and yoga can all be supportive. If a student has lymphedema and is trying a new type of movement for the first time, it may be wise for them to wear their compression garment and to monitor how their body responds afterwards.
Yoga is not likely to suddenly cause lymphedema. But for someone with an already compromised system, large changes in activity may need a gradual approach.
As teachers, we do not need to diagnose or treat. We do need to teach intelligently, encourage pacing, and respect that some students may need to check in with their specialist therapist if they are unsure.
Simple things yoga teachers can include
You do not need to redesign your whole class to support the lymphatic system.
A few simple inclusions may help:
- diaphragmatic breathing
- gentle repetitions rather than only static holds
- muscular engagement in standing poses and all fours
- subtle shoulder and neck movement
- inversions or legs up the wall where appropriate
- stretching and backbends that create movement through the front body and torso
The key idea is simple: lymph likes movement.
A simple self massage area to know
The neck and collarbone area are an important place, because lymph returns to the bloodstream here.
Very gentle massage around the sides of the neck, below the ears, and around the collarbones may support this area. The touch should be light, not deep like muscular massage.
This is not a replacement for treatment where needed, but it is a helpful reminder that the lymphatic system can be supported through very gentle work.
Why this matters in teaching
Most yoga teachers are already doing things that support the lymphatic system without naming them as such. Breath. Movement. Gentle inversions. Repetition. Awareness of swelling. Encouraging students to move rather than stay static for too long.
What this understanding adds is context. It helps us teach with more precision and gives us another lens through which to understand fatigue, puffiness, recovery, and the value of simple practices.
Yoga does not need to become medicalised to be informed. But when we understand a little more of what is happening inside the body, our teaching becomes more skilful, more relevant, and more supportive.
Find out more about Sinead‘s work: https://www.yogaphysiozone.com/
RELATED: Exploring the Physiology of Yoga
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